Van Man

A lot of people dread the idea of getting a mini van. To many, it’s a the biggest and most outward sign that you’re no longer young and cool and that you’ve very clearly fallen into the adult world filled with kids and car seats and soccer practice. Me? I like vans. All throughout high school, I drove a tan 1994 Ford Aerostar minivan that I dubbed The Tank. No, it wasn’t particularly cool, but it had plenty of space (not that I needed it, really, I only occasionally helped haul band equipment). It also offered me a pretty big cage to drive in to keep me safe. I’m a solid-to-great driver so that wasn’t really a problem, though it could have been, you never know.

Anyway, a few weeks back, my wife got rear ended on her way to work. She was fine, but the back of her car was a little scuffed up. Again, nothing serious, but the insurance companies were called and balls got rolling to get things taken care of. Towards the end of last week, she got word that what was going to be a one-day fix would take a little longer and wound up with a van rental. I think it’s a Town and Country (I’ve never been much of a car guy) and man is this thing cool.

Not only do both sliding doors and the trunk open with a few clips of a button on the key chain, but it also comes equipped with all kinds of screens and nooks and crannies, which is exactly what this long-time Transformers fan appreciates. I currently drive a 2002 Saturn with few bells and whistles so everything from the stereo controls on the steering wheel to the back-up camera are like living in the future for me. I could easily see myself cruising around town in one of these bad boys. The only problem–and it’s the same one I had back in my high school days–is that these big mugs such up gas like I used to drink Slurpees while playing Halo with my friends (super inside reference that only three people will get!). Still, considering I don’t do a lot of driving and we’ve talked about having more kids in the future, don’t be surprised if I do a post about eventually purchasing our very own van. Maybe by then they’ll be able to drive themselves so I can hop in the back and watch movies with the kids!